The last thing girls expect when saving their family photographs on laptop computers is for someone to hack in and blackmail them, but according to Mohammad Abdullah Al-Minshawi, a cyber crime researcher, some hackers do not just stop there. “Electronic blackmail can be due to negligence or ignorance,” Al-Minshawi says, “by leaving the web camera on, for example. Hackers do not just make photos publicly available, but sometimes change them into pornographic pictures using computer software.” According to Dr. Maysoon Al-Dukhailan, a psychology and sociology researcher, the young blackmailer will have a lot of free time and most probably be unemployed, and will be someone who feels his talents have gone unappreciated, resulting in “psychological problems pushing him towards finding pleasure in vengeful behavior such as blackmail”. Al-Dukhailan adds that sometimes family pressures can be a catalyst. Young women who fall prey to them, she says, “mostly suffer from an emotional void or ignorance”. Nidal Hassan, a computer network specialist, says that girls need to use continually updated protection software. “It is easier for hackers to access computers with cameras,” Hassan warns, “and they are able to copy photos and videos without the user's knowledge.” Abdulaziz Hajoud Al-Ghamdi of the Hai'a in Baha says research shows that blackmailing takes place mostly in places where men and women mingle, and that victims are mostly educated women. “Ten incidents of blackmail have been recorded in Baha,” Al-Ghamdi says, “including one where the guilty party was an education official and another involving a plumber. Preventative measures are the first step to dealing with the problem. Home, school and mosque must participate, and victims must report any incident to the Hai'a immediately.”
